Panasonic to unveil A4 sized compact LCD projector at Gitex Dubai 2003

The PT-LC80 is the top-of-range model in its new dynamic, feature-laden family of micro-portable projectors, which also includes the 1600-lumens PT-LC76 XGA and PT-LC56 SVGA units.

"Panasonic has extended its leading technology in AV systems to offer advanced office solutions that are sleek, easy to use and affordable. Our latest range of LCD projectors are slim, stylish, compact and secure enough to be carried anywhere. They are simple to setup and deliver uncompromising performance, making them ideal for important business presentations and meeting", said Hitoshi Shigetomi, Manager, System Sales Dept., Panasonic Marketing Middle East FZE.

"The Middle East represents a growing market for office systems that are equipped with the latest technology and offer a price benefit over other brands. An indication of the PT-LC80's versatility is the seven on-screen languages that it offers including English, German, Chinese, French, Spanish, Italian and Japanese. We are confident that our new range of LCD projectors will fill the need for high-performance, trusted products that are so stylish and easy to use", added Shigetomi.

The micro-portable PT-LC80 weighs just 2.2 kgs and is the same size as an A4 size sheet, with a height of just 65 mm. Its slim stylish body has a number of anti-theft features, such as a control panel lock that prevents operation without the remote control. Unauthorized access can also be prevented by installing a user password or by text superimposing whereby a user can program a text line, such a company name and URL or warning of choice, at the bottom of the projected image.

The lightweight projector has a one-touch auto set up, making it extremely convenient to use with a unbelievable set-up time of just 1.5 seconds. The projector offers Digital Keystone correction, which enables automatic picture adjustments, from phasing and dot clocks to vertical and horizontal alignment. The built-in gravity sensor can also determine the projector's angle relative to the floor and corrects for vertical keystone distortion automatically. Users can also perform horizontal, or left to right keystone correction, manually using the on-screen menu.

The PT-LC80's unparalleled advantages also include an automatic signal detector that allows users to connect to a different PC during to the presentation without any adjustment or even have to pressing the auto setup button each time. The PT-LC80 accepts up to two RGB (red, green, blue) inputs, which eliminates the need to juggle and reconnect equipment when giving consecutive presentations from two different PCs. The RGB2 terminal can also serve as a loop-through monitoring terminal for the RGB1 input, making it easy for the presenter to face the audience while making a presentation, while simultaneously viewing the display on a desktop or notebook computer. The projector also offer a unique Index Window, which allows an image to be frozen, stored in memory and displayed on the left side of the screen, while displaying subsequent images on the right.

In terms of performance, the PT-LC80 offers great value for money. The PT-LC80 delivers super-bright output with 2000 ANSI (American National Standards Institute) lumens, thanks to a high-performance optical system and high-efficiency 160W UHM lamp, (ultra-high performance lamp of Matsushita) for sharp, crisp images that are easy to see. It also provides excellent brightness uniformity of 90%. This amazingly flexible projector also has a Blackboard mode that can project images and text using an ordinary blackboard as a projection screen.

The PT-LC76 and PT-LC56 micro-portable projectors deliver a high brightness of 1600 ANSI lumens, colorful images in true 1024 X 768 native XGA resolution (PT-LC76) and 800 x 600 native SVGA resolution (PT-LC56), excellent contrast ratios (300:1 for the LC76 and 400:1 for LC56), while providing advanced resizing technology to support UXGA (-LC76) and SXGA (-LC56) resolution.

Also displayed at the stand are the new compact, low-cost 3-chip DLP Projectors which are considered by the industry as the World's Smallest, Lightest projectors for Large- Venue Applications. The two new high-performance 3-chip DLP projectors the PT-D7600 SXGA and PT-D7500 XGA projectors are easier to transport, set-up and maintain. These super-quiet projectors are equipped with a high-contrast, three-chip DLP™ subsystem, and newly-developed fluid-cooled optical and noise-suppression control systems. High-speed digital signal processing provides interlace-to-progressive signal conversion, digital noise reduction circuits and Digital Cinema Reality™, which greatly improves viewing quality from 24 frames-per-second film-based sources.

The PT-D7600 and PT-D7500 are super-bright models (6000 and 5000 ANSI lumens respectively) that display vibrant colors and crisp images in 1280x1024 SXGA and 1024 X 768 XGA resolution, respectively. They offer a remarkable, theater-quality contrast ratio of up to 1000:1 and are stackable for double brightness (up to 12,000 ANSI lumens). By adding the optional 10Base-T or 100Base-TX network module, the PT-D7600 and PT-D7500 are network-ready, enabling AV administrators to centrally monitor these projectors via LAN-based remote control over a Web browser, thereby driving down support costs and minimizing any down-time.

Panasonic will be participating in Dubai Gitex 2003 along with its UAE sole distributor Panatech Engineering and Oman National Electronics, part of the Al Futtaim Group.